Lovebug Season

WHEC, YOU DOT ORG. WE ARE IN THE MIDST OF LOVE BUG SEASON IN SOUTHWEST FLORIDA. YOU MAY SEE THEM SPLATTERED ALL ACROSS YOUR FRONT BUMPER OVER ALONG THE OUTSIDE OF YOUR HOUSE. LOVE BUGS ARE ONLY HERE. A FEW WEEKS OUT OF THE YEAR. WGCU FM HOST EMMA RODRIGUEZ SAYS HERE TO TELL US WHY WE'RE SEEING SWARMS OF THEM AND THE IMPACTS THAT THEY HAVE ON US. THANK YOU FOR JOINING US TODAY. EMMA, THANK YOU FOR HAVING ME. JENNIFER. WHY OUR LOVE BUGS SO PLENTIFUL RIGHT NOW IN SOUTHWEST FLORIDA. JENNIFER, IT'S REALLY ALL ABOUT OUR CLIMATE AND THE TYPICAL LIFE-CYCLE OF A LOVE BUG. WE KNOW ITS LOVE BUG SEASON WHEN THE ADULTS ARE FLYING AROUND AND GETTING ALL OVER OUR HOMES AND CARS FOR THE SPRING LOVE BUG SEASON WHICH WERE IN THE MIDDLE OF RIGHT NOW. THEIR EGGS ARE TYPICALLY LAID IN SEPTEMBER AND ARE HATCHING NOW IN MAY. I TALKED TO DR NORMAN LEFT LA A PROFESSOR OF INTEGRATED PEST MANAGEMENT AND BIOLOGICAL CONTROL AT THE UNIVERSITY OF FLORIDA. AND HE SAYS HE HELPS THE HATCHING PROCESS. >> INSECTS ARE COLD BLOODED SO THEY CAN'T REGULATE THEIR TEMPERATURE. THEY RELY ON THE ENVIRONMENT AND IT'S WARMER IN SOUTH FLORIDA AND IT'S MORE TROPICAL WHICH IS WHAT LOVE BUGS COME FROM. >> LOVE BUG SEASON IN BOTH NORTH AND CENTRAL FLORIDA HAS JUST NOW STARTING SINCE IT'S A BIT COOLER AND LESS HUMID UP THERE. LOVE BUGS ARE ALSO CALLED MARCH FLIES. >> AND THEY FLY AROUND IN PAIRS MATING IN THE AIR AND THEY'RE EVERYWHERE. WHAT DO THEY DO FOR OUR ENVIRONMENT? WHAT'S THE IMPACT? >> YOU THINK IT WOULD AFFECT OUR ECOSYSTEM, BUT DR LEFT PLUS SAID THEY'RE ACTUALLY PRETTY MINIMAL. LOVE BUGS. DON'T HAVE MANY PREDATORS AND INDIVIDUAL BUGS ARE ONLY LIVE FOR A FEW DAYS. THEY'RE PRETTY BIG NUISANCES AS THEY CAN DAMAGE THE PAINT ON CARS AND ALSO HOUSE WALLS. THEY'RE ATTRACTED TO CAR FUMES AND SERVICES THAT TRACK LIKE. >> AND THEY WERE ATTRACTED TO MY CAR THIS WEEKEND. HAVE A WHITE CAR. I DROVE IT ACROSS THE STATE OF FLORIDA. I GOT THERE ALL BLACK ON THE FRONT. I IMMEDIATELY WENT AND WASHED IT OFF BECAUSE I KNOW FROM EXPERIENCE THAT THEY CAN REALLY HURT YOUR PAINT. BUT I DIDN'T UNDERSTAND WHY. WHY ARE THESE LOVE BUG SO DAMAGING TO THE EXTERIOR PAINT 100 VEHICLES. >> THE WELL-KNOWN THIS IS THAT THE INSIDES OF LOVEBUGS ARE ACIDIC. >> AND THAT'S WHAT CAN END UP DAMAGING YOUR CAR'S EXTERIOR. BUT IT'S ACTUALLY THEIR EGGS THAT SHIP THE PAINT, DR LAPLACE AS THE EGGS REACT TO THE HEAT. >> WHEN YOU SEE THAT SPLATTER, THAT LIGHT-COLORED SPLATTER, THAT EGGS AND THOSE EGGS, IF THEY'RE LEFT ON THE CAR, WE'LL COOK INTO THE PAINT. BECAUSE OF THE SUN. AND SO YOU DON'T HAVE A PROBLEM IF YOU REMOVE THEM SOON. BUT IF YOU DON'T, THEY'LL COOK RIGHT INTO THE PAINT. >> AS OF RIGHT NOW, THE SPRING LOVE BUG SEASON SHOULD BE DONE BY ABOUT NEXT WEEK. GREAT. THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR SHARING THIS STORY. >> AND YOU ARE THE HOST OF A AMID DAYS HERE AT WGCU YOU'RE ON THE INSIDE AND IT'S SUCH A PLEASURE TO HAVE YOU HERE ON THE TV SIDE TODAY. THINK YOU EMMA, THANK YOU FOR HAVING ME AND LOVE YOUR WORK GIRL. DO YOU TOO. >> HERE'S SOME MORE INFORMATION ON LOVE BUGS FROM THE WGCU NEWSROOM. THE UNIVERSITY OF FLORIDA EXTENSION OFFICE SAYS LOVEBUGS ARE A NATURAL SPECIES NATIVE TO CENTRAL AMERICA THAT MIGRATED NORTH THROUGH TEXAS AND LOUISIANA. THEY REACHED FLORIDA IN THE MID 20TH CENTURY. YOU CAN FOLLOW ALONG WITH EMMA RODRIGUEZ SAYS COVERAGE BY SIMPLY LOGGING ON